County Scrambles In Rush To Decide On Arena

The sudden burst of support for building a hockey arena has left Broward County leaders scrambling to make a $160 million decision with almost no time to study it.

With Florida Panthers owner H. Wayne Huizenga on record as wanting an arena as soon as the 1996-97 season, county officials face a string of tough choices in coming weeks.

Chief among them is a proposed increase in the tax on hotel rooms from 3 to 5 percent. That increase, backed by hoteliers and tourism leaders last week, could raise $100 million toward building the arena. Arena revenues and a state tax rebate also would help pay for the $160 million complex.

Here are some of the obstacles facing the county:

-- There is no selection committee to figure out which proposed location is best: Broward Boulevard and Interstate 95 in Fort Lauderdale, near Sawgrass Mills mall in Sunrise, or elsewhere.

-- No independent financial expert can say whether cash from a bed tax, sales tax rebate, parking, ticket surcharges, leases and other revenue sources can together pay for the arena. Property taxes wouldn't be used.

-- So far, there have been no public meetings to air the issue and allow various interested parties to make their arguments. There are few public documents detailing what is being discussed and offered.

Some of these issues could come into focus today, when county commissioners talk about the arena and whether to approve the proposed increase in the so-called bed tax.

Although only a workshop session devoted mainly to legislative matters, the meeting could produce some tangible results.

"The most concrete thing that could come out of [the workshop) is to hire a financial adviser," County Administrator B. Jack Osterholt said on Tuesday.

The adviser would figure out whether available money would cover construction costs.

Commission Chairwoman Suzanne Gunzburger said she favored such a study.

"Let's make sure we don't go down the same road that Dade County did and wind up with a 20to 40-million-dollar gap," she said.

Lack of financing has forced Dade to abandon its attempt to build a Panthers home. And lack of support for new taxes prompted Panthers owner H. Wayne Huizenga to ditch Broward last summer as a possible venue.

Another potential discussion topic today: figuring out how to pick among competing cities - Fort Lauderdale and Sunrise in particular - that are hungry for the arena and all the benefits it is expected to bring.

Until now, choosing a site largely had been left up to Huizenga.

Now that public money is at stake, the decision on where the team will play could change hands.

"The County Commission is obviously going to pick, but before we pick, we need a lot more information," Osterholt said. "I don't think Huizenga has the right to pick."

Gunzburger said an independent study is needed to pick a place for an arena.

"I have a feeling that there's two competing publics [in Fort Lauderdale and Sunrise) that have a real desire," she said. "First, we need a study to see which site works ... so that nobody is making a decision because of politics."

But Fort Lauderdale City Manager George Hanbury worries that a site study would bog down the process.

A financial consultant would need at least six weeks to work, Osterholt said. County commissioners may not vote on a hotel tax for four months.

And time is something Huizenga has said he doesn't have.

Huizenga has said he will move the three-year-old franchise out of South Florida if no new arena is built because he's losing $1.2 million a month on the team. He is talking to other cities that want a team.

Huizenga spokesman Stan Smith would not comment Monday on a potential time crunch. He said Huizenga's aides will meet with Osterholt today.

Even with the many critical decisions ahead, and the hourglass ready to run out, Broward officials insist they're proceeding in the correct order.

"I want us to get from point A, where we are today, to where we are financially feasible," Gunzburger said. "Then we start worrying about the site. You don't do what you don't have to do when it isn't the right time."